I didn't know what to expect from this film. I did a little investigating beforehand and discovered that it was sort of a science fiction tale and starred John Cusack and his sister (playing his sister, so what a stretch) Joan Cusack. I also discovered that the movie was based on a story written by David Gerrold, best known to me as one of the writers of the original "Star Trek", so I was intrigued.
So it is a story of a small boy who claims to be from Mars and I won't spoil it by saying which way it goes, but I will say that it is very satisfying. Admittedly, the film volleyed dangerously close to being syrupy but it has enough humorous and harder situations to keep it on an even keel.
I will say that despite my respect for Mr. Gerrold, I realized after I saw the film that the story was not entirely unique. In fact, I figured out that it is awfully a lot like "Lilo and Stitch", the Disney animated movie from a few year's back!!
Ultimately, unless you don't like movies that are in the least bit heartwarming, I would give it a try. The film is nicely paced, and although it kind of wraps up a little too neatly, it leaves you with a nice, good feeling.
As a footnote, I saw the movie in a Palo Alto theater when a 5.6 earthquake hit. It's interesting to see how people react in different situations. I usually just take natural disasters in stride, but I did check around to see if I or anyone else was in danger of some chandelier falling or something, but this was one of those crummy box theaters, so I just sat there calmly, figuring that I'd duck beneath the seats if the shaking got heavier. Other people tended to be more vocal and when the shaking was done a few leaped out of their seats and onto their cell phones.
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